"I'm Leavin''

In the spring of 1971, Elvis Presley recorded a song that should have been a smash.

Whenever anyone asks me which Elvis record is the best "unknown" track, "I'm Leavin'" is my No. 1 answer.

I first heard it on a British documentary about the singer. Its haunting lyric and unusual structure made me curious about its origins. I knew there had to be a story there somewhere.

It finally surfaced on a fan website in a fascinating 2010 interview Arjan Deelan conducted with song co-writer Michael Jarrett. Jarrett had been on the road right out of high school -- including a stint with Jerry Lee Lewis -- and finally had his fill of the lifestyle. During a performance in Portland, Ore.,  he had an epiphany, he says, that enough was enough. He was tired of playing other people's music. After the show, he picked up his guitar and left.

Resting in San Francisco, clearing his head, he happened to see that his Vegas friend Sonny Charles was singing one night. He eventually stayed with Charles for awhile in Los Angeles and ultimately wrote "I'm Leavin'" with him.

"Sonny put me up for awhile, and it was in the fall of 1970 that I took Sonny's 12 string into the shower (water off, of course) and shut the glass door and was getting off on the natural echo and the 12 string, it sounded huge!," he tells Deelan. 

"I just started singing the la la la's and was just fooling around and the first verse just happened. It was then I realized I was singing about this girl I'd left behind in Portland who really wasn't supportive of my quitting the band and taking off for parts unknown, and had said to me at one point, 'What if your songs aren't good enough'? She said this to me when I told her I wanted to go to LA and get my songs recorded, and I'm thinking, 'Gee baby, if you're my girl, why can't you dream with me?' ... well, she just didn't understand so I said, I'm leavin' and that's that, I'm not beating my chops up in the bars anymore and if you can't dream with me, then what good is it anyway.....'" 

The song peaked at a meager No. 36 on the top 40, but Elvis thought enough of it to sing it several times in concert, including at the Boston Garden in 1971 and again in 1974 and 1975.

Here it is, backed by some poignant footage from Elvis' funeral. 

Bradley Reeves and I will highlight "I'm Leavin'" and several more of Elvis' lesser-known songs on the WDVX "East Tennessee Quiver" beginning at 11 p.m. (Eastern) Thursday, Aug. 15. Tune in at 89.9 FM or 102.9 FM locally in Knoxville or online at www.wdvx.com. Call or write us with your request. Just remember: It has to be a non-hit!  

What a time to be in L.A.! Sonny put me up for awhile, and it was in the fall of 1970 that I took Sonny's 12 string into the shower (water off, of course) and shut the glass door and was getting off on the natural echo and the 12 string, it sounded huge! I just started singing the la la la's and was just fooling around and the first verse just happened. It was then I realized I was singing about this girl I'd left behind in Portland who really wasn't supportive of my quitting the band and taking off for parts unknown, and had said to me at one point, 'What if your songs aren't good enough'? She said this to me when I told her I wanted to go to LA and get my songs recorded, and I'm thinking, 'Gee baby, if you're my girl, why can't you dream with me?' ... well, she just didn't understand so I said, I'm leavin' and that's that, I'm not beating my chops up in the bars anymore and if you can't dream with me, then what good is it anyway.....' - See more at: http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/interview_with_michael_jarrett_songwriter_im_leavin.shtml#sthash.zAxqbJ1Q.dpu

What a time to be in L.A.! Sonny put me up for awhile, and it was in the fall of 1970 that I took Sonny's 12 string into the shower (water off, of course) and shut the glass door and was getting off on the natural echo and the 12 string, it sounded huge! I just started singing the la la la's and was just fooling around and the first verse just happened. It was then I realized I was singing about this girl I'd left behind in Portland who really wasn't supportive of my quitting the band and taking off for parts unknown, and had said to me at one point, 'What if your songs aren't good enough'? She said this to me when I told her I wanted to go to LA and get my songs recorded, and I'm thinking, 'Gee baby, if you're my girl, why can't you dream with me?' ... well, she just didn't understand so I said, I'm leavin' and that's that, I'm not beating my chops up in the bars anymore and if you can't dream with me, then what good is it anyway.....' - See more at: http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/interview_with_michael_jarrett_songwriter_im_leavin.shtml#sthash.zAxqbJ1Q.dp

What a time to be in L.A.! Sonny put me up for awhile, and it was in the fall of 1970 that I took Sonny's 12 string into the shower (water off, of course) and shut the glass door and was getting off on the natural echo and the 12 string, it sounded huge! I just started singing the la la la's and was just fooling around and the first verse just happened. It was then I realized I was singing about this girl I'd left behind in Portland who really wasn't supportive of my quitting the band and taking off for parts unknown, and had said to me at one point, 'What if your songs aren't good enough'? She said this to me when I told her I wanted to go to LA and get my songs recorded, and I'm thinking, 'Gee baby, if you're my girl, why can't you dream with me?' ... well, she just didn't understand so I said, I'm leavin' and that's that, I'm not beating my chops up in the bars anymore and if you can't dream with me, then what good is it anyway.....' - See more at: http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/interview_with_michael_jarrett_songwriter_im_leavin.shtml#sthash.zAxqbJ1Q.dpuf